Review: KFC - Mac & Cheese Bowl

KFC's Mac & Cheese Bowl features Popcorn Chicken and three-cheese blend on top of a bowl of mac and cheese.

I picked up a bowl as part of a $5 Fill Up Meal that also included a chocolate chip cookie and medium fountain drink for $5.99 (because that's how much the $5 Fill Ups are here in Los Angeles).

Despite eating at the restaurant, my bowl came out only slightly warm and had cooled enough that the three-cheese blend didn't melt at all.

The Popcorn Chicken was plentiful enough that if I portioned it out properly I could probably get enough for almost every spoonful. The breading was pretty heavy but offered a decent crunch and managed to keep it up against the mac and cheese. If the whole point of eating fried chicken is breading and lots of it, KFC's Popcorn Chicken might be ideal for you. For me, it felt like the Popcorn Chicken added more crunch and seasoning than meatiness to the mac and cheese.

The mac and cheese was creamy and smooth with a strong American cheese flavor. The three-cheese blend doesn't do much for it as it was really mild. The macaroni pasta was tender and the cheese sauce clung well to it. I would call it a baseline mac and cheese and a slight step up from a decent boxed mac and cheese.

I was able to get them to put a bit of Nashville Hot sauce to part of my bowl in case you're wondering about the Spicy Mac & Cheese Bowl. The Nashville Hot sauce delivered an extra layer of savory flavor and medium heat but also a good deal of saltiness to an already salty dish. The flavor and heat go well with the chicken but didn't quite complement the mac and cheese for me. If you're weak against spicy heat but like the flavor, the creaminess of the mac and cheese does go a long way in taking the edge off.

Overall, KFC's Mac & Cheese Bowl turned out well enough. There aren't any surprises here but the extra crunch on a bowl of mac and cheese is nice.